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Deadline looming as Soh misses bid to qualify for Rio

SINGAPORE — National marathoner Soh Rui Yong’s bid to become the first Singaporean to qualify for the men’s marathon at the Olympic Games hit another hurdle yesterday.

Marathon runner Soh Rui Yong is racing against the clock — and his fitness — to qualify for the Rio Olympics. Photo: Wee Teck Hian

Marathon runner Soh Rui Yong is racing against the clock — and his fitness — to qualify for the Rio Olympics. Photo: Wee Teck Hian

SINGAPORE — National marathoner Soh Rui Yong’s bid to become the first Singaporean to qualify for the men’s marathon at the Olympic Games hit another hurdle yesterday.

The injury-plagued runner clocked 2hr 37min 33sec to finish 211th in the London Marathon — some 18 minutes off the qualifying mark of 2hr 19min.

Hampered by a plantar fasciitis injury — which causes pain in the heel and at the bottom of the foot — Soh put in a gutsy performance on the streets of London, but struggled in the final stretch of the 42.195km race. His finishing time was also well off his personal best time of 2:26:01 set at the 2014 California International Marathon.

Soh said in a Facebook post yesterday that it was a “challenging experience”. “I raced London Marathon today worrying that every step could be my last. 2:37 wasn’t what I was hoping for, but I’m happy with my race today. I did exactly what I wanted to do for 32.2km, but having barely trained since being injured a month ago, the lack of fitness really showed in the last 10km when I (was) struggling with cramps and white vision all the way to the end.

“When I do my next marathon, I’ll be better trained, hopefully without injuries, and have a stronger finish.”

Soh has till July 11 to meet the qualifying mark for the Rio Games, but his efforts could be hampered by his injury. In November last year, he injured his plantar fasciitis while training, with the pain forcing him to pull out of the Fukuoka Marathon — at the 12km mark — a month later. A flare-up also occurred at the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) University World Half-Marathon Championships in Cardiff last month, but he fought on to finish 66th out of 86.

Soh and teammate Mok Ying Ren are both in a race against time to meet the qualifying mark of 2:19, with 2013 SEA Games gold medallist Mok currently training in Colorado, in the United States, in his bid to earn his ticket to Rio.

If Soh is unable to meet the Olympic qualifying mark in the next two months, he could still stand a chance of fulfilling his Olympic dreams via a wildcard entry. The Singapore Athletics (SA) selection policy for Rio states that it will nominate one male and one female athlete to the Rio Olympics if it does not have any athletes who meet the entry standards.

“We must be realistic about his chances for qualification, as time is not on his side,” said C Kunalan, SA’s vice-president (training and selection). “Plantar fasciitis is an injury that is not easy to heal. I was surprised that he could even put in so much training with that injury.

“But Rui Yong should not worry about not making the qualification mark this time. He should recover well, and plan for the next SEA Games, the next Asian Games, and who knows, he will still be around for the 2020 Olympics if he wants to.”

Yesterday’s London Marathon also served up a thrilling race to the finish in the men’s elite field, with Eliud Kipchoge producing the second-fastest run in marathon history to defend his title in 2:03:05.

The 31-year-old powered home to beat compatriot Stanley Biwott by 46 seconds and shatter Kenyan Wilson Kipsang’s course record of 2:04:29. Ethiopia’s Kenenisa Bekele was third in 2:06:36. Kenya’s Jemima Sumgong won the women’s race, claiming top spot despite a fall at the water station 8km from the finish.

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